http://www.azcentral.com/news/politics/ ... ement.html
This has been really fun to watch. The hypocrisy that the Republicans are demonstrating on this particular issue is blatant and shameless, but certainly gives a clear picture of what Republicans really value, and how cheap their price is when it comes to compromising "family values".
Bottom line, pressure from corporate interests caused Brewer to cave, and veto the bill. The Republicans, who have trumpeted their opposition to gay marriage and any form of designation of the GLBT community as a minority with rights, threatened with a loss of money, caved. The biggie was the fear of losing the Super Bowl, but there were others. Delta Airlines, which is in the process of making Phoenix a western hub, and relocating a significant portion of its corporate operations in Phoenix, was in a quandary, since Georgia was going to pass a similar law. Now, they can put the pressure on Georgia, threatening to move the main part of their operations to Phoenix if Georgia passes a similar law. A number of other big corporations headquartered in Arizona made veiled threats that they would leave, or downsize their Arizona operations if the governor didn't veto the bill. Money talks. The GOP may be opposed to gay rights, but it doesn't take much in the way of money to move them in another direction. Three of the legislators In Arizona who had voted for this bill even decided they needed to back down, and lobbied the governor to kill a bill they helped pass. So much for those good, traditional, family values that the GOP is so fond of exploiting to grab up votes.
Blowhard Rush Limbaugh tried to fob it all off on his favorite straw man targets, "eastern liberals and the drive by media." Sorry Rush. It was the corporate supporters of the Republican party who laid down the threats. Governor Brewer made it look like she really did take the time to consider all of the options and nuances of this bill, but it was pretty clear that the economic threats from businesses which fear losing money dictated the outcome.
There is also some political fear involved. Brewer will likely go down in history as the worst governor the state has ever had (and it has had some of the most corrupt, incompetent governors anywhere, including two who were impeached, removed from office and one who is serving prison time) and the Democrats may take the governor's office, and turn the legislature into a Democratic majority. A big fight on this issue, bringing in PAC money and support, might spill over into the election results and turn the state democratic. If she'd signed that bill, the political fallout would likely give the Democrats a majority in both houses and in the governorship.